Tips

The document provides tips for high school students to stand out in their college applications, including joining extracurricular activities, volunteering locally, using social media professionally, and starting the application process early. It also discusses Coaching 4 Change, a nonprofit mentor program that encourages long-term engagement in meaningful activities.

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Tips

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CONTACTS: Marquis Taylor, CEO

[email protected]; (508) 521-9369

Tips on Being a Great College Applicant

Here are Some Ways to Stand Out on Your College Application

Preparing for the college application process can be very difficult and stressful. It can be hard to
determine what colleges look for in applicants and what will make you stand out from the crowd.
Here are some tips to get any college’s attention when applying:

1) Join Clubs and Extra-Curricular Activities

Colleges love to see that students are engaged in activities outside the classroom. A student who can
manage coursework as well as extracurricular activities will bring character and life to any campus.
Whether your interests lie in the arts or sciences, most high schools have a club for you. Clubs are not
only a good way to pass time and meet friend but begin thinking of a possible career. If you are interested
in business, consider joining DECA which you can participate in throughout college as well. If you see
yourself as a leader or are interested in politics, consider running for student government. However,
DECA and Student Government may not be for every student. Try out for school and local sports teams.
For those who enjoy expressing creativity, try joining chorus, band or orchestra, drama club or glee club,
participating in a musical or play, or even write for your student newspaper. Yet, high schools do not
always have the broadest scope of clubs or activities. Most schools welcome you to get a group together
and start a new one that interests you.

2) Volunteer
Look for volunteer opportunities in your local area. Volunteering is a perfect way to show colleges that
you spend your free time being productive, are dedicated to a specific area, and will ultimately bring this
to their college. Volunteer opportunities include:
 Church Programs such as service trips or hosting foreign families
 Animal Shelters such as The Southeast Animal Shelter
 Homeless Shelters such as Brockton Coalition- Homeless
 Food Pantries such as Greater Boston Food Bank
 Tutoring Programs at your local high school, middle, or elementary schools
 Mentor Programs such as the YMCA or Coaching 4 Change

3) Use Social Media to Your Advantage:

Next time your parents tell you to be careful of what you post on social media, don’t roll your eyes.
Colleges do look at social media accounts and this does have a bearing on one’s acceptance into the
college. Beyond this, social media plays an important role in the professional world. Today, social media
is a necessity in networking and job applications. Yet, if you are worrying about your old Instagram or
Twitter posts, do not think all hope is lost. Delete any posts that:
 Do not show your best character
 You would not want your grandparents to see
 Show any illegal behaviors such as underage drinking
 Use profanity or any type of racially insensitive language
 Are purely just embarrassing or do not represent you as a person anymore

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Tips on Being a Great College Applicant, 2

If you are a social media fanatic and do not want to go through years’ worth of posts, you can simply
private your pages so that only friends or followers can see them.

After you clean out your social medias, create a LinkedIn profile. LinkedIn is basically a professional
social media account that can help you find jobs, internships, and interact with professionals. Begin by
filling out the education, interests, and bio fields and start making connections. You may not use it at first
but just having one will show colleges that you are professional, eager, and motivated for your future.
4) Get Started Early:
It is never too early to start planning for your future. It can be scary thinking about the next chapter in
your life but take baby steps. Start by thinking of interests and possible career paths. Make a list of things
you enjoy doing, subjects you get the highest grades in, people you know who have jobs that sound
interesting, and careers you can see yourself in. Think of what type of location you want to go to college:
Local or far away? In a big city or small town? These questions may seem trivial, but these decisions are
important in applying to colleges. Remember colleges are not only accepting you but you are ultimately
agreeing to spend four years of your life there. So, make sure to make these the best four years.

“It is so important to not panic during the college application process,” said Coaching 4 Change CEO
Marquis Taylor. “You should not feel forced to join clubs or volunteer because it will make colleges care
about you more, you should do these things for enjoyment and fulfillment. In the end, this is your life,
your career, and your college experience; make it what you want.”
As a non-profit mentor program for struggling students, C4C encourages students to not only fulfill
volunteer hours through working with younger students in tutoring, project-based learning, and physical
activities but encourages students to become high school mentors, high school mentors to become college
mentors, and mentors to become teachers. “When you can engage in activities as a teenage and stick with
them throughout life, it does so much more than just look good on an application or resume,” Taylor
remarks, “it brings purpose to life.”

Coaching 4 Change is a Taunton, Mass.-based organization founded in 2010 as a student-lead mentor

program for struggling middle-school students. C4C’s mission is "to implement teacher-led school
improvement initiatives to support struggling students while creating a more diverse pool of future
educators.” This mission is attained by using physical activity and project-based learning to build
students’ team-work skills and improve classroom grades. For more information go to:
www.c4cinc.org, or call 508-521-9369. Facebook: @Coaching4Change; Twitter: #c4cboston;
Instagram: coaching4change.
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